Proverbs 31:27

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I was driving home today from a doctor’s appointment where I got a diagnosis that was very difficult to hear. I’m thinking of all the ways that this “label” could effect my life, including the fact that forevermore people are going to define me and who I am by using this label. I am not a label and who I am has not changed. I want my life to amount to so much more than labels and limitations.

While I’m driving I’m listening to a podcast about strengths and giftings and how to apply those in everyday life and the speaker told a story about her weekend with her little two year old. He hates his car-seat and he will scream and throw a tantrum everytime he is in it until they arrive at their destination. Well, this past weekend she took him to get ice cream and play at his favorite playground. But he didn’t understand where they were going, he just knew that right now he was strapped into a chair and so he screamed the entire way.

Well, God is trying to take use to our equivalent of ice cream and favorite slides but we don’t understand that the way to get there is through this time that we don’t like. So I’m gong to try to stop focusing on this current circumstance that I don’t like and anticipate the playground and ice cream at the end.

What is your current “car-seat circumstance”? Is it health? wayward children? sleepless nights? finances? relationships? Try shifting your perspective from the immediate unpleasantness to the potential God has to use this for great joy and blessing. It hard to do. I don’t expect to find out what my playground and ice cream experience is going to be for several years. But I know God has one in store and I know it’s going to be worth the unpleasantness of the current ride.

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Today my boys bombarded me with “I want a milkshake!” and since we are trying to eat healthier no ice cream has been bought at my house recently.

Which doesn’t stop the nightly requests for it.

But today when it was requested I had a brilliant idea. Let’s make milkshakes that are good for them! I’ve learned with kids it’s all about the terminology. If I call it a milkshake, it’s a milkshake…. And they love it. …Even if they know what is in it. So we made three ingredient, healthy chocolate milkshakes. And they helped make them. And they knew exactly what I put in. And they still loved it!

I didn’t measure at the time because we were going off consistency and what they thought tasted good but here is an approximation of what we made.

Healthy “Chocolate Milkshake”

4-5 frozen banana’s

3 Tablespoons Cacao powder

enough milk or nut milk for a vegan/dairy free version to get the milkshake consistency you want, this was about 1.5-2 cups in our case.

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So it can be super hard to spoon feed a baby and it can also be difficult to get them to take their daily supplements. I can’t blame them, would you like a mouthful of slimy vitamin D oil? I think I’d spit it out,too. I’ve used pouches but the consistency has to be just right and the child has to have a little dexterity. I find they work best for older kids. For little ones 4 months to a year it’s easier to feed from a bottle but they need more nutrition than just milk. My solution? Food bottles with a feeding cap and a thinner consistency of food.

It is critical that babies be exposed to a variety of fruits and vegetables from 4-9 months. This is not just for their nutritional needs but to help develop their taste buds and their tendencies towards desiring healthy foods as they grow up. It is also important to protect their immune systems and keep them as healthy as possible, while breast milk is amazing, making your own babyfood also allows you to add some immune system boosters as well.

Because different fruits and vegetables are different consistencies it is hard to give a precise recipe since all measurements are approximate. You will quickly learn what consistency comes through the feeding nipple at the rate that is suitable for your baby.

The information on this site is not intended or implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. All content, including text, graphics, images and information, contained on or available through this web site is for general information purposes only.

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What do you do when your baby’s diaper rash cream contains ingredients like:
Dimethicone, sorbitan sesquioleate, PEG-30 dipolyhydroxystearate, glycerin, tropolone, tocopheryl acetate, 1,2-hexanediol, caprylyl glycol, magnesium sulfate, potassium nydroxide, and phenoxyethanol?
What do you do when every product you put on the skin of your baby causes a red rash?
You make an all-natural diaper rash cream that contains only three ingredients.
You need ¼ cup virgin coconut oil.

Lavender oil and melaleuca oil and a container to hold the lotion. I reused a metal container that previously held a beeswax candle but you can also use a lotion tube like these ones at amazon

Melt the coconut oil and add 15 drops each of lavender and melaleuca oil. Allow the cream to cool and harden before using.

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What is it that I am suddenly in love with? Lavender oil. This stuff is amazing!

I’ve used it for bug bites and it takes the sting right out. Amazing!

My son has a bad habit of picking at his bites and leaving gaping bloody spots but a few days of lavender oil and you would never know it was there.

I use it for Monster Spray, to calm the boys down and help them sleep.

The boys have their own rollerball of lavender and coconut oil that they carry in their pockets for skinned knees and the other bumps and bruises of boyhood. It really cuts down on the crying and they heal faster.

Abigail’s skin is so sensitive that I can’t use any products on her but any rash she gets I roll lavender oil on and it disappears.

I also rub it all over her when we go out to keep mosquitoes away. She smells great to us but the bugs can’t stand it.

When I burn myself cooking I put lavender oil on right away and no longer have weeks of pain and scaring after bad burns. After a day or two I don’t even remember the burn.

Diffusing it also helps with sleep and putting it in my diffusing necklace is relaxing and calming.

These are a few of the ways I’ve used lavender oil recently but there is one major reason I am currently LOVING lavender oil. It saved me a week in the hospital away from my family!

Abigail was my second c-section and the recovery was excruciating. I finally thought I was healing but then I started waking up at night with itching in the area of my scar that was so bad it kept me up at night for weeks. I was so busy during the day taking care of hubby and three littles under the age of three that I didn’t pay much attention to it but when it started stealing the precious little sleep I was getting it got my attention. Let’s just say when I saw the scar in the mirror I freaked out. My husband said I should have gotten a picture, but trust me NO ONE wants to see that, (or smell it). If you are morbidly curious just google “c-section scar infection” and it was as bad as the worse photos there. I knew exactly what it was because a friend had recently had an infection in her scar and been hospitalized for a week while they treated it. I knew if I made an appointment with my OB she would have me in the hospital so fast it would make my head spin. It was the beginning of the weekend so I decided to try lavender oil while I decided if I was going to call her on Monday or not.

My husband helped me apply it twice that day and the next. The itching stopped fairly quickly after the first application and I decided I wasn’t going to keep looking at it and freaking myself out all weekend. But when my husband went to apply the lavender oil on Sunday he gasped; “Oh,my goodness!”

“What?!What’s wrong?!”

“Nothing! It’s completely healed up. It looks Amazing! Like you never had a second c-section, amazing!”

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Today I excited to announce our first guest blogger my sweet friend Lauren. Lauren and I met through MOPS a group for Mothers of Preschoolers to connect and build friendships. At the time she had a brand new baby girl, her first, and I had my second brand new baby boy. Here is a photo of her precious family; aren’t they beautiful? I can attest to the fact that they are just as beautiful inside; when we had to make an emergency move her husband took all three of our children (all under the age of 2) while Lauren helped me pack up our house! They are such a caring, giving family. Lauren is passionate about natural health and recently shared that she had made these amazing essential oil blends for her sister. I was so impressed that I immediately asked her to write a guest blog post so I could share this information with my wonderful readers. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Essential Oil Blends

I’m so excited because my little sister is pregnant! She will be making me an aunt for the very first time! I’ve been checking in with her a lot lately and knew that I wanted to help her in any way I could. Recently, she was complaining of headaches a lot. I saw that she yearned for something natural because she doesn’t want to take medication during her pregnancy. (I was the same way.) I took the opportunity to share my love of essential oils with her. Many have asked me why do you use rollerballs? For my sister, rollerballs are especially convenient because she is constantly on the go. Instead of having to mix a bunch of oils every time, why not use a rollerball already premixed and ready to use? Makes sense to me. Keep reading if you want to learn how I made these awesome blends!

I was online searching for the perfect rollerball blend recipes and I stumbled on this website

She offers these FREE labels!!
So, with my label sheet printed I got to work!
I personally chose 6 blends that I thought would best pertain to my sister but there are HUNDREDS of recipes out there to choose from!
First you will need rollerball bottles: I get them from a couple places. There is a site called aromatools.com where I get most of my glass bottles to make cleaning supplies, oils blends, sprays and salves. The shipping is not cheap, but the glass bottles are far cheaper than amazon, so probably still worth it. I like the amber glass bottles in 10ML for blends. Also, you can get them here at Amazon, or if you are ready to make a large quantity you can save by buying them in bulk here.

Next, you will need a carrier oil: I like this one off Amazon.
You can also use Jojoba, almond oil, grapeseed oil, rosehip oil….etc. All of those can be found by doing a quick search on Amazon.

Finally, you will need the essential oils: I personally use doterra oils. There are many brands out there but you want to do your research because not all oils are treated equal. If you want to order them from Joanna directly, here is the link to her site.

If you’re pregnant or breastfeeding, please check with your provider before using essential oils. I have included a list of oils to be cautious of and to avoid altogether while pregnant.

How I made them:

Add the essential oils to the bottle. (recipes of the ones I made will be below)

Fill the rest of the bottle with carrier oil. (You may want to use a funnel like this)

Pop in the rollerball cap and you’re done!

Recipes:

Immune Booster:

Good for healthy immune function
2 drops each of:

Oregano

Melaleuca

Lemon

Frankincense

Cinnamon

Tummy Tamer:

Good for upset stomach

3 drops Ginger

2 drops Peppermint

2 drops Fennel

1 drop Coriander

1 drop Lemon

Tension Tamer:

Good for head and neck tension

4 drops Peppermint

2 drops Frankincense

2 drops Lavender

2 drops Chamomile

Deep Breath:

Good for congestion or breathing issues

4 drops Peppermint

2 drops Eucalyptus

2 drops Lemon

2 drops Rosemary

Anti-Stress:

Good for when feeling stressed

5 drops Bergamot

5 drops Frankincense

Good Night Sleep Tight:

Good for restful sleep

5 drops Lavender

5 drops Cedarwood

I hope you all enjoyed this and are excited to make your own!

About the Author

Lauren Dragone is a wife, mother and registered nurse. She has been married for almost 4 years…mommy for 2 years….she is currently staying at home to help run their family’s landscaping business and to raise her adorable baby girl, and a self professed crunchy mama.

**Please note: Products mentioned in this article have not been evaluated by the FDA. These products and information on this page are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. This website is not a substitute for professional care. Always consult your medical doctor regarding your medical care.

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Our poor little Joseph had so many health issues as a little one. As soon as he was able to chew the JuicePlus+ Chewables I got him started on them. His health got so much better! His pediatrician was amazed at how much healthier he was since he went from sick ALL the time to virtually never being sick. After a year of constant doctor appointments we suddenly stopped needing to see the doctor every week! Then one day I ran out of the purple chewables about a week before my next deliver was coming. Since the purple ones are the ones that help with immune resistance I really should have been more on top of these because the next day he got the flu! We went back to our pediatrician while I anxiously waited for the deliver of chewables to come in. She couldn’t understand how he got so sick so suddenly when he had been doing so well. As soon as the chewables came in I got him started back on a double dose and shocked his pediatrician with how quickly he recovered! Her comments to me was “I’ve never heard of this JuicePlus+ before but if it works that well for him don’t ever let him run out again!”

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Daniel’s Story:

Even though Daniel stays home with me he does go to the church nursery and every time there is a child with a runny nose he comes home with it. Isn’t it great how they share? Well it would take weeks for him to get over it and no sooner would he be feeling better than another runny nose would show up in nursery and the whole cycle would start over again. I heard that Juice Plus+ had Gummy’s for kids and since we had such good experiences taking it ourselves we decided to try them for Daniel. He had a runny nose when I started him on them and it cleared up right away. After a month on them he had still not gotten a cold. We had a cold snap and he started to get a little runny nose, that morning he immediately brought me his Juice Plus+ & asked “Bitamins, Mommy?” He knew they were helping him feel better! He took his Juice Plus+ and the runny nose was gone in a day, instead of two weeks!

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My Story:

When I was pregnant with Daniel we had many problems with my prenatals. Not only was my body not absorbing the nutrients I needed during the pregnancy but the prenatals werecausing additional medical problems for me to the point I was actually hospitalized because of how my body reacted to my prenatal pills. Finally my doctor told me it was safer to stop taking the pills altogether since we weren’t able to find one that worked well for me. When I became pregnant with Joseph I asked her if it was safe to take Juice Plus+. She had been trying to find a prenatal that we hadn’t already ruled out during my last pregnancy and was so happy to hear that I was considering Juice Plus+. She said Juice Plus+ was wonderful and better than any prenatal she could prescribe for me. She advised me to take it regularly as my prenatal. I had none of the issues I had with Daniel and was much healthier overall. Also, Daniel was born with very weak and gnarly nails but Joseph’s nails were strong, health, and perfectly shaped which they also linked to the Juice Plus+ I had been taking.

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Hubby’s Story:

A few years ago my husband was diagnosed with IBS and put on the FODMAP diet. While this diet helped his digestive problems tremendously it also severely limited the amount of fruits and vegetables that he was able to eat because his body could not digest the natural sugars in them. Only being able to eat meats and rice with only about 3 vegetables and a few berries began to compromise his immune system. He was missing about 3-5 days of work each month because of getting whatever sickness was going around the office. We found the solution to be starting him on Juice Plus+. Juice Plus+ has all the nutrients from Fruits and Veggies that we don’t normally get from our regular diets and since all the sugars are removed his body had no trouble digesting them. And since he started taking them he hardly ever gets the office colds.